There are many causes for someone to get to the point where they are no longer safe to drive. Family members must have difficult conversations with the driver about stopping driving.
A printable sheet which both the older driver and family sign. The family agrees to help the older driver to explore all options to remain mobile, and the older driver agrees to explore other forms of transportation.
How Not to Take the Car Keys and How to Take the Keys
By Teepa Snow, OT
These are two videos by occupational therapist Teepa Snow. In the first, three minutes long, she discusses the wrong ways to take car keys from someone with dementia. In the second, five minutes long, she demonstrates an effective technique for getting someone with dementia to relinquish car keys.
How to Understand and Influence Older Drivers
Published by National Highway Traffic Safety Association
This comprehensive webpage is intended to inform and broaden the discussion about older driver safety and mobility. In it you will find detailed guidance to help older drivers make informed decisions about their driving behavior and suggestions on how to begin a conversation about safety concerns.
Published by Caring.com
Comprehensive webpage covering causes of driving difficulties with age, warning signs of an unsafe elderly driver, professional assessments of driving safety, how the DMV can help ensure an older adult drives safely, how to have ‘the talk’ about giving up the keys, ways tohelp a senior transition from driving, transportation options for seniors who no longer drive, and top ridesharing options for seniors.
Two Resources for Family Conversations
Published by The Hartford Insurance Group
Family Conversations with Older Drivers
This short web page highlights changes that occur with age that make driving more risky for older drivers, changes in driving behavior many people naturally make to continue to drive safely as they age, best practices for bringing up the issue if you think someone is no longer safe to drive, and some tips for situations in which the older adult refuses to make any changes to their driving habits.
Safe Driving for a Lifetime: Family Conversations with Older Drivers
By The Hartford Insurance Group, May 2018
This 24-page booklet, published in 2018, helps families understand in what situations an older person should restrict their driving or stop driving. Best practices in how to talk with someone about the issue, including how to help them plan for alternative transportation is included.
We Need to Talk: Conversations About Driving
Published by AARP
This online seminar, produced by AARP, The Hartford, and MIT AgeLab, will help you determine how to assess your loved ones’ driving skills and provide tools to help you have this important conversation. The video is free, but requires a free account to watch.
Spanish: See En español, below